Abstract
Establishment and growth characteristics of alfalfa ( Medicago sativa L.) highly embryogenic cell suspension culture are described. Flow cytometry was used to study the stability of nuclear DNA content. Somatic embryos were used as primary explant and contained only tetraploid cells, mostly in the GI phase. A slight shift to higher ploidy levels was observed during culture initiation, but polyploid cells were eliminated after a few weeks of culture and DNA histograms resembled the pattern found in primary explant. Considerable increase in ploidy levels accompanied by a loss of embryogenic capacity was observed if a long subculture interval was used. Ploidy level and embryogenic capacity remained stable with a short subculture interval in a long term culture.
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